Key Topic 2, Section 3 (Johnson’s Great Society)

In what year was LBJ elected?

1964

In what year did LBJ introduce his 'Great Society'?

1964

What percentage of Americans supported LBJ according to the polls in 1964?

75%

When was the Fair Housing Act?

1968

What was the Fair Housing Act of 1968?

outlawed housing discrimination

What did the Executive Order in 1965 do?

Required any institute receiving federal funding to employ more non-whites

In what year did LBJ declare his 'war on poverty'?

1964

How much was it estimated by social experts, in 1962, to end poverty?

$2 billion annual budget

When was the estimated $2 billion annual budget to end poverty released by the University of Michigan?

1962

When was the Economic Opportunity Act passed?

1964

What was the Economic Opportunity Act?

The policies that would make up the Great Society

What does ''EOA'' stand for?

Economic Opportunity Act

By 1965 how many states had anti-poverty programmes?

44

By 1965, how many states were due to have anti-poverty programmes?

6

By 1965, how many Job Corps centres were opened?

53

By 1965, approximately how many applications on average were Job Corps centres receiving?

Thousands a day

By 1965, how many members of families on welfare were receiving work training?

25, 000

By 1965, how many college students were on work study programmes?

35, 000

By 1965, how many adults were learning to read and write?

35, 000

By 1965, how many adults were enrolled in basic education programmes?

19,000

By 1965, in how many cities were Neighbourhood Youth Corps in?

49

By 1965, in how many rural communities were Neighbourhood Youth Corps in?

11

By 1965, how many VISTA volunteers were assisting vulnerable groups?

8, 000

What is VISTA?

Volunteers in Service to America

By 1965, how many were receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children benefits?

4 mill

In 1968, how much was given to small businesses and rural development?

$17 mill

What was the Head Start Program?

preschool for underprivileged children

How many children benefited from the Head Start program during LBJ's presidency?

1 mill

What was Upward Bound?

provided college preparation for low-income teenagers

How many children benefited from the Upward Bound program during LBJ's presidency?

50, 000

Which of Kennedy's programmes did LBJ extend?

Food stamp

By how much did LBJ increase minimum wage by?

35 cents

What percentage of the population was in poverty in 1965?

17%

What percentage of the population was in poverty in 1972?

11%

How much did the federal government spend on the poor in 1963?

$13 billion

How much did the federal government spend on the poor in 1966?

$20 billion

By 1968, what fraction of non white families still lived below the poverty line?

1/3

By 1968, how many more non whites were unemployed than whites?

Nearly double

By 1968, by how much greater was the infant mortality rates for non whites compared to whites?

Nearly double

In 1964, how many Americans had never finished high school?

54 million

In 1964, how many Americans had under five years of schooling?

8 million

How many students, with proven ability, couldn't afford to enter college?

100, 000

By how much did Johnson convince Congress to increase federal expenditure on education?

Double -> $8 billion

What acts did LBJ pass to help the poorest schools?

Elementary and Secondary Education Act
Higher Education Act

What did the ESEA stand for?

Elementary and Secondary Education Act

What did the HEA stand for?

Higher Education Act

When was the ESEA passed?

1965

When was the HEA passed?

1965

How many poor children benefitted from the ESEA?

6.7 million

In 1985, the National Institution of Education estimated that how much of the expenditure of the ESEA had gone to children above the poverty line?

50%

What did Robert Dallek conclude in his biography of LBJ?

'If his educational reforms did not lead to a Great Society, they have at least made for a better society'

When was HUD established?

1965

What did HUD stand for?

Housing and Urban Development

What did HUD do?

combat housing shortages and decay in urban areas

What fraction of Americans lived in areas with housing shortages and urban decay in 1965?

2/3

What was the Demonstration Cities Act?

Cities that the government would improve

When was the Demonstration Cities Act passed ?

1966

How much did LBJ estimate the Demonstration Cities Act would cost?

$2.4 billion

How much money was given to the Demonstration Cities Act?

$1.2 billion

How much money did the New York Times estimate the Demonstration Cities Act would cost in New York alone?

$6 billion

How many cities was the Demonstration Cities Act supposed to cover?

6

How many cities was the Demonstration Cities Act end up covering?

150

What act was passed by LBJ to try and combat ghetto housing?

Omnibus Housing Act

When was the Omnibus Housing Act passed?

1965

What did the Omnibus Housing Act do?

Financed rent supplements and $8b of low income housing

= cheaper and desegregated

What fraction of the Detroit ghetto rioters arrested in 1967 had jobs paying over $120 weekly?

4/5

What was the name of the act under which Medicaid and Medicare came under?

Social Security Act, 1965

When was the Social Security Act passed?

1965

What did Medicare entail?

-federally funded healthcare for over 65s

In 1966, how many Americans enrolled in Medicare?

19 million

Within a single year, Medicaid increased the amount spent by the federal and state governments on healthcare from what to what?

$1.3 billion to over $2 billion

How much did Medicare cost in 1966?

$3.5 billion

How much did Medicare cost in 1993?

$144 billion

In 1965, what percentage of the GNP was spent on healthcare?

5%

In 1990, what percentage of the GNP was spent on healthcare?

Over 15%

What fraction of the population benefitted from Medicare and Medicaid by 1976?

1/5

Between 1965 and 1973, how much was spent on the Great Society?

$15.5 billion

Between 1965 and 1973, how much was spent on the Vietnam War?

$120 billion